Brussels  - Eurogroup finance ministers were meeting in Brussels on Monday amid growing concerns that the European economy may get stuck in recession until
2010, prompting possible new bail-outs of troubled countries and shedding some 6 million jobs in the process.

Latest projections from the European Central Bank (ECB) suggest euro area gross domestic product (GDP) could shrink by up to 3.2 per cent this year, far more than previously expected.

GDP could either fall by 0.7 per cent or rise at the same rate in 2010, the ECB said.

The European Union's executive in Brussels, the European Commission, in January forecast a drop in eurozone GDP of 1.9 per cent in 2009 and a GDP growth rate of 0.4 per cent in 2010. But it has since said that "the down side risks to economic activity have increased".

EU employment and social affairs ministers meeting in Brussels earlier on Monday warned in a document that the "unprecedented recession" affecting the 27-member bloc could add 6 million unemployed by 2010, resulting in "severe social consequences, affecting households and individuals."

One of the worst affected countries is Spain, whose jobless figure has hit a nine-year high of 3.2 million.

Speaking upon his arrival in Brussels, the country's finance minister, Pedro Solbes, described new estimates suggesting an annual unemployment rate for 2009 of 17.2 per cent as "bad news."

Meanwhile, Austrian Finance Minister Josef Proell said there was "consensus" on the need to increase the amount of funds at the disposal of the European Commission to bail out troubled European countries.

EU leaders agreed in December to increase this fund to 25 billion euros (31.4 billion dollars). But much of the money has already been used to help Latvia and Hungary, two of the countries worst hit by the global economic and financial crisis.

As ministers met in Brussels, Romanian President Traian Basescu confirmed in Bucharest that his country would also require help from the EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Meanwhile, Lithuania's central bank intervened to quell devaluation jitters.

Finance minister from all 27 EU member states will meet on Tuesday and will likely back calls to double the IMF's funds to 500 billion dollars.

"We must all give more money to the IMF," French Economy Minister Christine Lagarde said ahead of Monday's eurozone meeting. (dpa)